[MomsAVoxell]

There is a .. "new Wave" (?) .. happening around microcomputers associated with that era .. in the modern context. I think the reason this article has impact, is that this 'new Wave' of microcomputers is tangible, visible, and not just on the horizon but happening every single day, in a kind of quiet revolution/resurgence of platforms once considered 'outdated', suddenly becoming relevant again.

You can still use these machines - this holy trinity of computers still get regular software made for them - and as platforms, there is a resurgence happening.

The ZX Spectrum Next. The myriad FPGA-based consoles that allow full access to entire "retired architectures". The Apollo A6000 'next-gen Amiga' .. all of these new 'hobbyist systems' fulfil the original need that the 'trinity' systems proposed. There are, literally, hundreds of different ways to get a modern reproduction of the 'second wave' systems.

So I imagine a day, in the not too distant future, that really useful applications are released for the 'next-gen 8-bit hobby microcomputer' systems. Put a well-fitted Apple II environment in a wrist-watch, and watch the devs arrive .. ;)

By way of example, I have in my (admittedly extensive) retro computing collection, an Oric-1/Atmos system that was used consistently, every single week for 40 years, to record motorbike club membership details, statistics, visit logs, and so on. For 40 years that system was doing its job as an on-site membership database and fuel log. That it was offline and only physically accessible was a feature, not a bug.

I think there are plenty of other places that the modern, new-school 'retro-' microcomputers can find their setting - just a little bit above embedded, perhaps, side-wise to the mobile, and very definitely competing alongside desktop in terms of active user experience.

Not to mention, all the 'new retro consoles' are an awesome market for games and entertainment, of course ..

[justsomehnguy]

> there are plenty of other places that the modern, new-school 'retro-' microcomputers can find their setting

Quite amusingly it tends to be a very narrow and specialized things usually. Quite the opposite of the universability of a modern computers.

[MomsAVoxell]

I think seeing a narrow/specialized use case for older computers demonstrates the general applicability of computers as a whole.

They’re “infinite machines” inasmuch as there is an infinity of uses for a computer, and not all of those cases are obvious.

[HankStallone]

It'd cost me about $10k to replace the stack of Commodore equipment I gave away to a scrap dealer 20-ish years ago, if I bought it all used now. But I'm still tempted to start, maybe with just one or two pieces.

[microtherion]

I recently picked up a used Epson HX-20 for a very reasonable price. It's still an amazing design, and could probably still be used for actually useful tasks.

[MomsAVoxell]

I have the Olivetti M10 version of the HX20 - its very definitely something I could type on all day, writing a book or some such thing.

My iPad with smart keyboard, not so much. I just get distracted by all the apps.